While You Were Gone
by Ami Mizu
Summary: (The title is a misnomer in many ways.) Ahem...The return of Kaho and Li, as well as the appeareance of a new student is no coincidence. Something’s about to happen and it’s going to be big.


Fanfic Title: While You Were Gone  
  
Author: Mizu no Hime  
  
Genre: General/Romance  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Summary: The return of Kaho and Li, as well as the appeareance of a new student is no coincidence. Something's about to happen and it's going to be big.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own CCS or the characters in any way. But I love the show.  
  
*****  
  
Chapter 1: The Return of Two Friends  
  
*****  
  
Beep. BANG! Sakura Kinomoto finally found her alarm clock. Looking at the time, she gasped. Ak! She was going to be late! And today was the first day of 8th grade too! Sakura quickly began to get dressed.  
  
"Sakura!" Keroberos the yellow furred guardian beast shouted. "Don't tell me you are late again!" Looking at his hurried master, Keroberos sighed. "Ai, already two years have passed since you transformed all the Clow Cards into Sakura Cards and you still haven't mastered the art of waking up on time. When will you ever learn?"  
  
"Kero-chan!" Sakura whined as she grabbed the Sakura Cards and put them in her pocket. (These days, she takes them everywhere in case something happens.) "I'm going to be late! Can you yell at me later?" With that, Sakura ran downstairs, leaving a slightly upset guardian in her room.  
  
Sakura did her usual routine. Gulp down breakfast, grab her roller blades, and rush to school. Only now, she went to school alone because she was older and Touya was away at college. Fujitaka (Sakura's father) believed that Sakura was old enough to take care of herself, which was true in many ways. Sakura was now more mature (she's about 14 now), and her magic powers had increased. As Sakura was skating, she thought about how life used to be. She thought about how she first met Keroberos and how Touya almost caught him. Gosh, I really miss Touya, now that I think about it. Sakura thought. Touya Kinomoto was in his 3rd year in Tokyo University and only came back for holidays, which wasn't very often, being that Tokyo University was one of the best schools in all of Japan. However, he wrote home a lot and still worried about his little sister.  
  
Thinking back of the time when Touya wasn't in college yet, Sakura though about Li Syaoran, and how he and Touya never got along. Silently, she laughed when she pictured Li and Touya staring each other down. Will Syaoran ever come back? She thought. Li and Sakura had been writing to each other ever since they had parted, but Sakura always wondered if he had found someone else while he was in Hong Kong. The young teenage girl pushed her doubts about Li aside. No way! He said he liked me! However, Sakura still had some fearful doubts.  
  
Sakura got to the gate of Tomoeda, Sakura looked at her watch. "I'm 15 minutes early!"  
  
"Wow, that's a surprise." Someone said in front of her. Somehow, to Sakura, the voice seemed familiar. Looking up, she saw a boy her age, wearing the school uniform and a teddy bear with wings in his hands. She could not believe her eyes.  
  
".Li-kun?" Sakura questioned the boy, or rather, teenager.  
  
"What?" Li asked. Sakura was looking at him strangely. "Do I look strange? Or have you just forgotten how I look?"  
  
"Of course I could never forget you!" Sakura rushed and gave Syaoran a long hug. "We promised, remember?" She whispered. Together, they went through the school gates.  
  
Finally getting to the classroom after taking Li to the school office to fill out some paperwork, Sakura sat down at her usual seat in the back left corner of the room. Tomoyo came in and greeted her. "Ohayo, Sakura-chan! How was your vacation?"  
  
"Tomoyo-chan! Nice to see you again!" Sakura responded with a smile. She was so happy that Li was back. Did Tomoyo know? "Tomoyo, can you believe it?"  
  
"Li-kun is back, right?" Tomoyo whispered to Sakura before she could say anything. Of course Tomoyo knew. She was the one who helped Li convince his parents that he should go back to Japan. Tomoyo had paid for the flight as well.  
  
"Yes! I'm so happy!" Sakura shouted and hugged Tomoyo. Rika, Chiharu, Takashi, and Naoko came over.  
  
"Hey, Sakura." Rika said. "Why are you so happy?"  
  
"Because Li-kun is back!" Sakura told her friends. They all smiled in remembrance of their friend. "I saw him today and he's going to be going to school with us too!"  
  
"Who is Li-kun?" a voice from behind them said. Sakura whirled around. "Oh, it's you, Anou!" Anou sat down at where Li used to sit and took off his jacket.  
  
"So tell me, who is Li-kun?" he asked.  
  
"You know, Li-kun!" Looking at Anou's face, Sakura could tell that her friend did not know who Li was. "Oh, Anou, you came last year right?" Anou nodded his head. "Well, Li-kun was. um." Sakura didn't know how to describe Li. Had he changed much? She didn't know what to say. Luckily, Tomoyo caught on.  
  
"Anou," Tomoyo began. "Li-kun was an exchange student that came from Hong Kong. As you can see," indicating Chiharu, Takashi, Rika, Naoko, and Sakura, who were all smiling, "We became really good friends with him. But he had to leave two years ago."  
  
"I can't believe Li-kun has come back!" Takashi exclaimied. "He and I were best of friends! Speaking of friends, the term friend was coined by a man by the name of Fr-"  
  
"Okay, okay, "Chiharu stopped her cousin. "We've heard enough."  
  
"However," Rika began, putting a finger to her chin. "Why has he come back?" Then, looking at a very very happy Sakura, she nodded. "Oh, I understand." Rika turned to Tomoyo, who smiled and nodded her head as well.  
  
"I wonder who our homeroom teacher will be." Anou commented. "And I can't wait to meet Li."  
  
A few minutes later, the homeroom teacher came in. Sakura gasped when she saw her. It was someone she knew very well.  
  
"Class," Ms. Mitsuki began. "I am glad to be back after a few years in England." There was much applauding in the class. Obviously, Ms.Mitsuki was pretty popular. Sakura was especially happy. I remember how she helped me in the Final Trial. Sakura thought. "Continuing on. With the return of an old teacher, I am honored to tell you all of the return of another old classmate." Immediately, whispers began among the students. "You can come in now." Everyone smiled as Li Syaoran entered the room. "I don't need to introduce you to the class, now do I?" Ms. Mitsuki asked Li.  
  
"No." Li replied. "I think everyone knows me."  
  
"That's good. Now, where should I seat you?" Ms. Mitsuki looked at the classroom. "Why don't you sit behind Tomoyo?" Then, the young teacher bent down and whispered to Li, "Be careful of your actions and wary of your surroundings I feel that the return of both of us is not a mere coincidence." Li looked up and nodded his head in understanding.  
  
The exchange student from Hong Kong looked at his old seat. Who was that strange kid sitting behind Sakura? Is he a new student? What is this power I sense from him? And how come he's in MY seat? Li was quite disturbed by the presence of the new student. However, because of the manners he had leaned over the past two years, Li made himself walk normally and cooly to his new seat, unlike the way he would stomp like a mad cow a few years ago.  
  
TBC. 


End file.
